by Prax Venter
A few people came by to congratulate him as word spread and, he was happy to see Garl and Wyben again. Just before they went up to their rooms for the night, the inn’s door opened. Jack looked over, grateful for anything to distract him from Ryea’s rant on a horse named Momo she used to brush. Standing in the doorway and letting the cold night air blow into the common room was Harrak, and his bloodshot eyes were already locked on Jack.
He staggered forward, and the door closed behind him. Most everyone’s eyes were on Lex’s father as he swayed on his feet. Jack realized that he hadn’t seen the old bearded man inside the inn before and wondered when the guy ate.
He took a few steps closer to Jack and squinted his eyes as if reading something.
Jack’s brows came down, and he wondered why he hadn’t been inspecting more people himself. With his attention focused on the old bearded man, Jack willed his Character panel open.
Harrak - Bygone Hero: Knight | Level 59
[Health: 139/150 | Mana: 55/55]
Relationship -
[Disposition: Feared]
Jack just got to the word ‘Feared’ when Harrak’s eyes went wide.
“Abomination,” he mumbled, barely audible. “Abomination!” he repeated louder and began to shake. Lex stood up and quickly moved to escort her father outside with a firm grip on his elbow.
“I’ll see you for breakfast,” she called over her shoulder and then they were gone.
The silence in the common room returned to normal murmuring, and Jack turned back to see a wide-eyed Ryea.
“What’s his deal, anyway?” Jack asked, poking his thumb toward the door.
She shook her head briskly, like a dog shaking off water, and her thick auburn braid slapped her shoulders.
“He smokes too much joyweed, for one. Ever since Lex’s mother died in the Tower… it’s been downhill from there. He’s too old to Climb the Tower now, but when I was just a sprout, he was the best. Party Leaders and fighters came to Blackmoor just to learn from him.”
Jack took in a deep breath. He could try and help the Town, but Lex’s father was fighting a battle only he could fight- and losing by the looks.
“Welp,” he said, standing and stretching. “I’m going to call it a night. Train hard at the Wall, Ryea.”
“Pfft, you climb high in the Tower. Oh- and thanks for treating me to a fine meal.”
She winked one of her dark brown eyes at him, and he waved over his shoulder. Moments later he closed himself into his room and laid on his bed, thinking about his first victory and the day’s events, but his thoughts wandered as he drifted closer to sleep.
Did someone become a Bygone Hero by aging? Were there seasons- years? How old was Lex? When was Kron’s birthday? How did Sol get his job? Everything was so strange here, and he had so many questions. He kept an ear out for Lex’s door, but he passed out before he heard anything.
The next day, Jack woke up with over an hour before breakfast and decided he didn’t want to just lie trapped in his cramped room.
He put on his armor and stepped out into the narrow hallway. He paused for a moment and considered knocking on Lex’s door, but thought better of it and headed down into the common room. It was empty.
“Demi?” Jack called out as he approached the bar, and a few seconds later the tall silver-haired woman came spinning around her painted-eye curtain.
“Morning, Jack. How can I help you?”
“I need to do something with myself. Can I make the wharf run for you again this morning? I also want to get out of here before Pan comes.”
Demi stared at him for a moment and then nodded. “I like you, Jack. I wasn’t sure at first, but I foresee some major changes coming to Blackmoor.”
Jack felt a chill, and his attention was drawn to the huge eye painted onto the midnight blue curtain behind him. He shook it off.
“I hope to make a positive difference here before I leave. My goal is to push that corruption back. Maybe we could leave together one day and go find your son.”
She looked like she’d been slapped in the face and her usual, all-knowing half-smirk faded. She didn’t seem mad though. Demi solemnly nodded and sucked in a shuddering breath. It was the first time he saw her lose her composure.
“I’d like that, Jack,” she said, then extended her hand, offering him a trade window with 30 coins. “But first, go get me some fish.”
“Be back by Two to Close,” he said as he accepted the trade.
He exited the inn and took a left at the crossroad, traveling along the dirt path. The sky was overcast, and the air held a chill, but his shoddy leather pants broke the biting, sea-born wind much better than his old cloth equipment. He passed by the squat stone houses, their sides lit by the rising sun at his back. Next came the fields of verdant green grass, waving gently in the salty sea breeze. Eventually, his boots met sand, and he had made it down to the beach.
The same massive birds pecked around in the damp sand, hunting for morsels in the early morning gloom. He wondered what the hell they ate. Such a huge creature surely needed many pounds of fish to sustain itself. Jack saw more of the birds circling the cove and the fishermen who stood on boats, casting nets into the dark waters.
The dock was empty this time as he stepped up to the wooden building perched up on wooden logs. The windows were all drawn closed. He walked right up to the rickety-looking door and rapped his knuckles a few times.
“Sol, it’s Jack. Here to buy fish for Demi.”
The door pulled inward almost instantly, and a man with striking resemblance to an angry owl wearing black robes stood in the doorway.
“You’re early,” the Wharfmaster said, his angular scowl firmly in place.
“Early bird gets the worm, right?” Jack said, flashing a winning smile.
The balding man crossed his arms and looked to be about to say something snide, but his tight lips turned into what could be considered an approving frown.
“Indeed. A surprisingly simple bit of wisdom there, Hero. Maybe you aren’t as stupid as your face suggests.” Sol held out his hand to open a trade, and an image of 15 fish sat waiting for him.
Jack thought of ten or so comments he wanted to make about his stupid face and then thought better of it. As Jack moved the 30 coins over to the trade window, it occurred to him that he never did see the man’s face for dinner at the inn- or his daughter’s.
Sol accepted the trade and dismissed Jack with the wave of a hand, turning to close his door.
“Wait,” Jack said. “You seem like a smart guy. Can I ask you a few questions?”
“Be that as it may, I’m not a teacher, and you’re far too old to be a student. I’ve better things to do with my time than-”
He broke off when Jack opened another trade window and deposited three of his remaining six coins as an offer.
“I understand. Perhaps a bit of compensation for your precious time?”
The tall Wharfmaster squinted down at Jack, studying him for a moment, then selected accept on the offer.
“Very well. Three coins, three questions. Make them count.”
Jack nodded. “Why don’t I ever see you or your daughter eating at the inn?”
Sol snorted and crossed his arms. “You won’t ever catch me or my family supping with my employees or the other Townsfolk riffraff. I personally prepare nutritious meals for myself and my daughter. Two questions.”
He could cook? Jack wondered if these people had classes like Heroes. He focused on the robed man before him and inspected his Character window.
Sol - Townsfolk: Wharfmaster | 34% Proficiency
[Health: 5/5]
Relationship -
[Disposition: Inferior]
Proficiency? That was new. Jack resolved to try and remember to inspect everyone from now on. He considered his next question carefully.
“Who chose you to be the Wharfmaster?”
“Ah, here your professed uncanny ignorance rears its head. I almost feel bad charging y
ou for this, but when the previous Wharfmaster was killed during a demon spawn attack, the Town chose me to fill the newly open role. Last question- do try not to waste it.”
Things were getting interesting, and Jack’s mind spun with hundreds more questions. He almost blurted out something stupid like, “The Town chooses?” but was able to stop himself. One of the tall man’s sharply slanted eyebrows rose into an arch, and the slight change in his expression conveyed volumes of impatience.
“Why do you overcharge when the inn is the only place to spend coin?”
Sol gave Jack a devious smile. “That’s an ill-phrased question from an irrelevant Hero. Your answer is that I am disappointed in you. Our transaction is now complete.”
He had no idea what that meant, but Jack caught a sparkle in the detestable man’s eye and it clicked. He had just traded coin to the Wharfmaster in exchange for information…
The flimsy, wooden plank door clattered closed on its hinges, and Jack found himself standing alone on the docks. As he walked back to the upper part of Blackmoor Cove, Jack realized that the scabbard permanently attached to his hip didn’t interfere with his movements nearly as much as it used to. It felt like a part of him.
The thought made Jack uneasy. A small wave of claustrophobia echoed through his mind when he remembered that this wasn’t even his real body. He stopped, pausing on the dirt path for a moment and caught his breath. Everything around him felt so real. The cold he felt… was currently from the shadow of the Tower that fell over him.
Jack willed his feet forward into the weak light streaming through the clumps of clouds above. The impossible Tower to his left didn’t open for business for another two and a half hours, so he walked towards the fountain instead.
How the bubbling water affected anything was still a mystery- although the clues he’d picked up tied it to the Town’s level or something. If so, it was a pitiful sight.
Jack pulled out his upgradeable sword and noted that it was a few inches longer than it had been before. He knew the change had to be from the sizable claymore he had recently added. A smile lit his face as he stood and practiced a few attacks and blocks. The new length of the sword threw him off a bit, and he hoped that it wouldn’t get comically large as it ate up more bladed weapons.
His mind wandered through things the Wharfmaster would be spending his money on. Was there a part of Town he hadn’t found yet? A hidden casino behind a crack in the cliff?
His sword-arm grew a bit fatigued as he practiced with its weight under the imposing Tower, but he felt like this wasn’t a waste of time. There didn’t seem to be a stat for how proficient he was at his Irrelevant Hero-class.
Time was up, so Jack sheathed his blade and trudged up the dirt path to get his rest bonus.
Lex was already sitting at the bar, and they turned to see who had entered. The first thing he noticed was how tired she looked. Her usually golden eyes were ringed with darker circles and her hair was less blonde and more straw colored.
They exchanged their good mornings, and Demi served them their breakfast at the bar. Before the older woman disappeared behind her curtain, Jack Inspected her.
Demi - Bygone Hero: Siren | Level 67
Townsfolk: Innkeeper | 93% Proficiency
[Health: 30/30 | Mana: 750/750]
Relationship -
[Disposition: Liked]
He began to wonder where she got all her Mana from but flinched when her panel snapped shut in his face. There had to be a range for Inspecting someone. Jack looked over at Lex wearily eating her meal with slow chews.
“Don’t worry,” he began, around his own mouthful of fish. “I’ll be leveling as fast as possible, and before you know it, you’ll be able to take a day off for once.”
Her sad smile managed to light her eyes, and she swallowed before she responded.
“Even with your advantages,” she said as her eyes drifted to the sword, “don’t be surprised if it takes you longer than you think. Do not take any risks. You’ve already impressed me.”
He smiled at that and nodded as he crammed more food into his face.
“Got time for a few of Jack’s ignorant, battle-related questions?” he asked as they were finishing up.
“Of course,” she said.
“How does the defense number work exactly?”
She gave him a little shrug. “More is better. Dodge determines if an attack hits you at all, Defense is what happens if it does.”
“Okay, fair enough. Does the Magic Power stat affect my abilities?”
Lex popped in the last bite of her seaweed roll and shook her head while she chewed.
“I believe you said both abilities are affected by your Main Hand slot, correct?”
He pulled them up just to be sure.
PATH: Dimensional Blade [1]
► Double Strike - [Activated | 5 Mana | Main Hand Damage x2]
~ Your blade becomes a blur, attacking the target twice in a single moment.
PATH: Data Mining [1]
► Mining Laser - [Channeled | 2 Mana/Second | Main Hand Damage/Second]
~ skill.repeating(rewrite_v1.58) include(error.correction(target, !total, local_user));{unif
“Yes, both,” he confirmed, but looking at them again raised another question.
“Then no,” Lex said. “Any ability that uses the damage value of equipment is not magic. My healing ability, for example, is directly affected by Magic Power. I don’t wear gear that bolsters that though, because I can only heal when something isn’t attacking me. I’m much better off with higher survivability.”
“Makes sense,” he said.
She nodded and began equipping her gear, and he took a moment to try and inspect her items. The first thing he looked at was her ornate, black-hilted sword.
Morning’s Edge - [Sword | Value: 151]
| Dmg: 45 |
| Hit Chance +0.10 |
| Dodge +12 |
| Max Mana +110 |
| +15 Mana on Floor Transition |
~ A new day, another chance.
“Wow,” Jack said, leaning to the side like he had been blown out of his seat. “Now that’s a sword.”
“It does the job,” Lex responded with a half-smile. “Come on, time for you to get in there and get your own gear.”
Jack finished his breakfast and got his standard rest bonus. He was looking forward to another climb in the Tower. As they stepped into the light, Jack remembered what he wanted to ask about his Paths.
“Lex, you said all Paths start at tier 1. How do I … you know, get better- get to the next tier?”
“Your Paths gain power as you climb the Tower and are directly tied to your Hero Level. The first increase happens when you reach Level 25. Then, Paths advance to tier 3 at Hero Level 50, and 4 at 75. There are stories that say once a Hero reaches Level 100, they unlock their ultimate Path abilities, but no one has ever reached Floor 100 and Exited, that I’ve ever heard of.”
Jack’s eyes were alight with interest. It felt like he was born to do this and waking up or logging out now seemed like it would be a huge disappointment.
“You ready?” Lex said as she turned her sleep-deprived eyes up to his. They had arrived at the Tower.
“Are you?” he asked. “If I can’t take any risks, you can’t either.”
She nodded. “Agreed.”
This time Lex went first and vanished into a ball of light the moment she touched the iron ring bolted to the door. Jack stepped up after her and grabbed hold with no hesitation.
- 14 -
Jack opened his eyes and checked out the new Floor 1 layout for the day. All around him were racks of weapons affixed to grey, stone brick walls. He was inside a vast arched hallway that appeared to be a medieval armory. Searching behind him, Jack saw a dead end with a customary Exit Orb. Piled against the wall behind it were crates and barrels filled to bursting with various types of swords- it was a bouquet of hilts.
He shot a glance down the long, wine-colored c
arpet that ran over rough-cut stone blocks until it split at a T-intersection. The back wall of that intersection was covered by a floor-to-ceiling painting of a person on a horse, but Jack couldn’t make out their features from this distance. Everything was dimly lit by flickering orange torches held by black iron sconces affixed to the walls between countless weapon racks.
Knowing it would be too good to be true, he tried to inspect the closest sword to see if it was an item that held value and that he could potentially merge with his own weapon. The one he picked was a polished short sword with a green and red ribbon wrapped around a copper hilt.
Nothing happened, and Jack reached out his hand with the intent to place it into his inventory. No matter how hard he tried, Jack could not pull it free. It was as if the object were bolted to the wall.
“No real surprise there,” Jack whispered to himself and resolved to press on, but the sharp, wall-mounted blades along the walls glinting in the torchlight as he passed them continued to taunt him.
There were only a few steps left until he reached the painting when a large longsword came floating into view from the right side of the intersection.
“Hey!” a metallic-sounding voice said as the sword paused and then moved straight for him.
Jack pulled his own sword out and up to deflect the whistling blade at the last moment. His basic instincts from his one practice session in the yard just saved his life- well, maybe saved a few Hit Points.
The magical floating sword reared back and hacked downward again, and this time Jack found the attack easier to sidestep than to block.
With the strange animated weapon committed to its swing, Jack hacked his own blade downward and counterattacked the sword. Their metal clashed, and Jack felt the blow vibrate into his forearm. He danced away from an upward strike and then deflected another swipe hacking at him from the side. The impact of blade on blade sent sparks into the air, and Jack wondered how exactly he was supposed to kill a sword.
Then it all came together when he saw the floating weapon bob away a few paces to get some room. There had to be an invisible person holding that sword. He could tell just by the way it moved.